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Top attractions in top cities

According to the most recent visitor statistics from the Chicago Office of Tourism, here are the city's top ten attractions:

More than 8 million tourists visited Navy Pier in 2009, making it the Windy City's most visited site. The Pier's 50 acres are packed with parks, shops, restaurants and other draws, including an 18-hole miniature golf course. Riders on the 150-foot-high Ferris Wheel get a unique glimpse of the city's famed skyline.

The twenty-four lakeside acres known as Millennium Park drew 4 million visitors in 2009. Among the park's attractions are the Cloud Gate sculpture (left) and the Jay Pritzker Pavilion outdoor concert venue (right). The Pavilion hosts the Grant Park Music festival each summer, which features free classical music concerts by Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus.

This lagoon runs alongside Lincoln Park Zoo, which was founded in 1868 and is one of the last in the U.S. to offer free admission. The not-for-profit haven boasts a 75,000-square-foot replication of African rain forests, savannas and other landscapes for two dozen species, as well as a 29,000-square-foot facility for endangered gorillas and chimpanzees. Approximately 3 million people visit the 1,100 animals each year.

For 17 years, Chicago Trolley & Double Decker Co. has welcomed visitors and residents alike for sightseeing tours on one of 75 vehicles, including San Francisco-style trolleys and open-top Double Decker buses. In 2009, the company shuttled approximately 2,875,000 riders.

In 2009, nearly 2 million visitors toured John G. Shedd Aquarium, which is home to 22,000 aquatic animals of 1,500 species. The facility, which features ecosystems from the Pacific Northwest, the Amazon rainforest and the Caribbean, aims to showcase wildlife diversity in marine ecosystems and promote conservation.

Displaying 5,000 years of diverse art forms, The Art Institute of Chicago has educated museum visitors and enrolled students since its foundation in 1879. Approximately 1.8 million people toured the museum on Michigan Avenue in 2009.

The Museum of Science and Industry was the seventh most-visited attraction in 2009, drawing more than 1.6 million people. Located in the Hyde Park neighborhood and just a short walk from Lake Michigan, the institution fosters learning with interactive exhibits and immersive experiences.

Sue, the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton ever found, is the star at the Field Museum of Natural History, which claimed 1.3 million visitors in 2009. The museum was founded to house the exhibits showcased at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition that attracted international visitors in droves and pushed Chicago to new architectural heights.

Anna Kane, of Alton, Ill. looks down from "The Ledge," at the Willis Tower, known previously as Sears Tower. The glass balcony, which is 1,353 feet in the air, juts out 4 feet from the 103rd floor Skydeck. More than 1.26 million people visited the Skydeck in 2009.

The world's largest stained-glass Tiffany dome and more than 700 free artistic events and exhibitions draw 800,000 annual visitors to the Chicago Cultural Center. What started in 1897 as the city's first central public library has become a tribute to the Windy City's architectural heritage.